Physics

The basic shape that best describes our expanding universe is also the hardest shape for physicists to understand.

Columnist Natalie Wolchover examines the latest developments in the “forever war” over whether string theory can describe the world.

Charles Bennett and Gilles Brassard were recognized for their foundational work in quantum information science.

The last decade has seen vast improvements in humanoid robots, but graduating to widespread use might require going back to the fundamentals.

Pushed down to a certain scale, the laws of physics seem to fall apart. Astrid Eichhorn, a leader in an area of study called asymptotic safety, thinks we just need to push a little further.

Microscopic crystals extracted from meteorites could help settle a debate about the birth of our patch of the Milky Way.

Henry Yuen is developing a new mathematical language to describe problems whose inputs and outputs aren’t ordinary numbers.

Columnist Philip Ball thinks the phenomenon of decoherence might finally bridge the quantum-classical divide.

Today’s observatories document every pulse and flash in the sky each night. To understand how the cosmos has changed over longer periods, scientists rely on a more tactile technology.